AHRQ: Decline in HACs saves 8,000 lives, $2.9 billion
Editor's Note National efforts by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to reduce hospital-acquired conditions (HACs) helped prevent some 8,000 deaths and save $2.9 billion in costs between 2014 and 2016, according to a new report released June 5 by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Data…
CMUNRO SCALE created to facilitate risk assessment for pressure injuries
In 2016, after 10 years of research and validation, Cassendra Munro’s Pressure Ulcer Risk Assessment Scale for Perioperative Patients (Munro Scale) was made available for use in the perioperative setting and was added to the AORN Prevention of Pressure Ulcers Tool Kit. The Munro Scale assesses a patient’s risk level…
Joint Commission announces first Physician Leader Forum Challenge Award
Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced April 26 that Select Medical, based in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, is the first recipient of its Physician Leader Forum Challenge Award. The award recognizes Select Medical’s leading practice for wound care and prevention of pressure ulcers in patients throughout the system. An improvement project lowered…
Reduced risk of pressure injuries in hospitals with WOC certified nurses
Editor's Note Hospitals that employ nurses certified in wound, ostomy, and continence (WOC) care have lower rates of hospital-acquired pressure injuries (HAPIs), finds this study. Of 928 hospital included in the analysis, 36.6% employed WOC certified nurses. Hospitals with WOC certified nurses had lower HAPI rates and better pressure injury…
AHRQ data show drop in hospital-acquired conditions
Editor's Note There were about 3.1 million fewer hospital-acquired conditions (HACs) between 2010 and 2015, according to a newly released report from the Agency for healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Most of the decline was because of a: 42% reduction in adverse drug events 23% drop in pressure ulcers 15%…
Cardiac surgeon’s invention reduces pressure ulcers, LOS
Editor's Note A device invented by Rafael Squitieri, MD, chief of cardiothoracic surgery at St Vincent’s Medical Center in Bridgeport, Connecticut, reduced pressure ulcers and length of stay in studies, the December 24, 2016, Connecticut Post reports. The device, called “TurnCare,” is a mat that is placed under patients and…
Hospital cost of surgery-related pressure ulcers
Editor's Note This study found that hospital-acquired pressure ulcers add 44% to the cost of major surgical hospital stays, but the amount varies depending on length of stay. Using data from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) State Inpatient Databases and the Medicare Patient Safety Monitoring System for 2011…
New assessment tool ready to help prevent pressure ulcers
After a 10-year journey, Cassendra Munro’s Pressure Ulcer Risk Assessment Scale for Perioperative Patients (Munro Scale) is available for use in the perioperative setting and has been added to the AORN Prevention of Pressure Ulcers Tool Kit. “It is the most comprehensive risk assessment tool available for use by the…
Munro Scale added to AORN tool kit
Editor's Note Cassendra A. Munro, MSN, RN, CNOR, announced April 3 at the AORN Surgical Conference & Expo in Anaheim, California, the addition of the Munro Pressure Ulcer Risk Assessment Scale for Perioperative Patients (Adults) to AORN’s Prevention of Perioperative Pressure Ulcers Tool Kit. The Munro Scale is the only…
Fine-tuning the Munro Scale for pressure ulcers
Pressure ulcers affect up to 3 million adults in the US each year, according to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Surgical patients are at high risk to develop pressure ulcers because of immobility during long procedures and anesthesia that blocks sensitivity to pain and pressure. Estimates of treatment…
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